Saleen S331

2007 Ford F-150 Description

The whining heart of the S331 Supercharged is the Ford SOHC 24-valve 5.4-liter V-8 fitted with a new 2300cc blower developed in-house by Saleen. The company canvassed the available off-the-shelf superchargers and decided to make its own, based around two Lysholm-supplied screws, says Saleen's John Spruill, S331 program director. The goal was to improve efficiency by integrating components to reduce seams, or potential leak points. Extensive port shaping and blending were done to smooth airflow. The air follows a long, spiral path after leaving the Saleen air-filter housing: through the screws, around and up to the air-to-water intercooler, and down the long intake rams to the valves.

Spruill says the primary benefit of the somewhat expensive design is high air volume at relatively low pressure, meaning the engine makes its 450 horsepower with just 5.5 psi of peak boost. Lower boost means less waste heat to purge and fewer changes needed to the base engine. Indeed, except for injection mapping, the base 5.4 is otherwise left largely as Ford built it, although a larger aluminum radiator handles the extra cooling requirements. For the base S331, power is increased from the stock 300 horsepower to 325 using a low-restriction airbox and exhaust developed by Saleen.

Visual presence of the blue-collar F-150 is turned up with mammoth 23-inch aluminum wheels, forged for extra strength (it is a pickup truck, reminds Spruill) and wrapped in 305/40 BFGoodrich g-Force T/A radials. A stamped aluminum hood, butch front and rear bumper fascias, and rocker-panel extenders punctuated by the twin side pipes make the truck look longer and lower. To "keep it real," says Spruill, Saleen installs black plastic lower lips on the painted bumpers for scuff protection and reinforces the new rear-bumper cap with a steel bar so it will still support the weight of a ranch hand.

Suspension work was put into the retuned shocks, springs, and anti-roll bars, generally stiffened for better body control. The S331 Supercharged drives like a Mustang with a back porch. It stays flat and carries unexpectedly high speeds through corners. Understeer is inevitable in the tight turns with those giant hams scrabbling for grip, but in quicker transitions, the S331 manages to disguise some of its 5500-pound curb weight. Although test numbers weren't obtainable during our brief preview drive, the S331 feels fast, like it'll easily dispatch loitering Camaros with a lusty snort from its side pipes.